The NAVSTAR Global Positioning System (GPS) is a satellite-based radio-navigation system intended to provide highly accurate three-dimensional position and precise time on a continuous global basis. When the system becomes fully operational in late 1988, it will consist of 18 satellites in six orbital planes, and three active spares.
Each satellite will continuously transmit navigation signals at two carrier frequencies, L1=1575.42 MHz and L2=1227.6 MHz consisting of the P-code ranging signal (a 10.23 MBPS pseudonoise code), the C/A-code ranging signal (a 1.023 MBPS pseudonoise code), and 50 BPS data providing satellite ephemeris and clock bias information. Unbalanced Quadri-Phase Shift Keying (UQPSK) modulation is utilized with the data bits added to the ranging codes, the C/A-code signal lagging the P-code signal by 90.degree.; and the C/A-code signal power nominally exceeding the P-code signal power by 3 dB.
Navigation using GPS is accomplished by passive triangulation. The GPS user equipment measures the Pseudo-Range to four satellites, computes the position of the four satellites using the received ephemeris data; and processes the Pseudo-Range measurements and satellite positions to estimate three-dimensional user position and precise time.
GPS receiver signal processing can be partitioned into three parts: RF signal processing, estimation of In-phase (I) and Quadrature-phase (Q) signals; and subsequent processing of these I and Q signals to implement code and carrier tracking, data demodulation, SNR estimation, sequential detection, and lock detection functions. Traditionally, all three parts are implemented using analog signal processing techniques.
A paper briefly reviewing analog RF signal processing implementation which describes three digital signal processing (DSP) techniques for implementing the I/Q generation function, and describes DSP algorithms for implementing the subsequent processing functions may be found in the NTC '83 IEEE 1983 National Telesystems Conference papers, entitled "Digital Signal Processing Techniques For GPS Receivers," by Mark A. Sturza, November 1983. This paper reviewing RF signal processing implementation for GPS Receivers is hereby incorporated by reference.
A Delta-Range (DR) measurement is derived from the difference in carrier phase over a fixed time interval. Position can be estimated using Delta-Ranges through the change in the satellite position over the observation interval. In the prior art, it would generally take approximately 24 hours of processing Delta-Range measurements to obtain a reasonable accuracy for the location of the receiver utilizing a global positioning system.
Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to reduce the amount of time required to obtain an accurate location of the receiver utilizing a global positioning system.